One Woman’s Path to Becoming the Chief Financial Officer of a Major Tech Company

Marie Myers wears many hats. She’s a mother, a SoulCycle aficionado, an accomplished cook who can whip up a mean pasta dish from scratch, an avid reader, a jewelry designer, a dedicated community supporter, and the chief financial officer (CFO) of HP Inc. She was named HP’s CFO in February 2021, after serving as the chief transformation officer since March 2020 and as the interim chief financial officer since September 2020. 

Myers recently chatted with Fairygodboss about her career trajectory, returning to HP, and how she helps shape a positive future for her company and women colleagues.

Myers’ Path to becoming HP’s CFO 

Myers’ roots at HP dig 20 plus-years deep. A native of Australia, she moved to the U.S. to continue her education and her career. At Compaq and later HP, she came up through the ranks in Finance, serving in various leadership roles including as HP’s Global Controller. 

As part of her journey, Myers left HP for a brief period to become CFO at a robotic process automation start-up company – combining her passions for both finance and innovative, disruptive technologies. This experience, she says, gave her fresh perspectives that she brought back to HP with her when she returned. 

“As CFO, I am responsible for all aspects of HP’s financial operations including accounting, financial planning and analysis, business decision support, tax, audit, treasury and investor engagement,” she tells Fairygodboss. “I have to add, being a CFO is really an evolving role these days — it’s not just about having a thorough understanding of accounting and business operations; it’s also helping to plan our company’s overall direction, to help HP become more forward-looking, customer obsessed, and to make data-driven, strategic decisions.”

There is also what she calls a “cross-functional nature of the role,” which involves helping to drive transformation and influence change within the company. Myers takes great pride in doing just that. Myers says that she leads with empathy and integrity and is committed to do what’s right, to always be authentic, establish trust, gain respect, and inspire others. 

Supporting other women from a leadership position

As HP’s CFO, Myers is able to help not only her company as a whole, but individuals too. “It’s exciting to be a part of HP’s transformation in Finance and to be able to help lead our organization into the future,” Myers shares. One of the best parts of her career, she adds, has been to encourage and inspire other women to pursue leadership opportunities.

Myers believes we all have a responsibility to support the growth and development of others, to help them along in their careers, to allocate time to each other, and to share knowledge, she explains.

“I think it’s particularly important for women to support each other and to stand up and be advocates,” she says. “Throughout my career, I’ve been privileged to have had amazing mentors, to mentor other women, and to be actively involved in programs at HP like Disha, a program in India designed to help support women in their professional growth.”

HP is strongly committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. This commitment starts at the highest level, with an impressively diverse board of directors for the technology industry, Myers tells Fairygodboss. In fact, as of 2018, the board’s five female members, 45% percent of the total, also mentor top leaders at the company. HP’s Women Impact Networks across the globe also provide mentorship, training, and preparation to promote and enrich women’s experiences and development within and outside of the company.

“From our earliest days, HP recognized that capturing and drawing from diverse points of view improves our products and services — and our company as a whole,” she says, adding that HP has always been a supportive environment for women to grow and progress. 

“I learned, after leaving HP and then returning, just how important that culture is to me, both personally and professionally. Our leaders are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion — to our global environment and a sustainable future, and to all of our stakeholders, customers, partners and employees.”

At HP, she says it’s really all about doing the right thing, “the HP Way.”